Reasons for Designation
A small number of areas in southern England appear to have acted as foci for
ceremonial and ritual activity during the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age
periods. Two of the best known and earliest recognised, with references in the
17th century, are around Avebury and Stonehenge, now jointly designated as a
World Heritage Site. In the Avebury area, the henge monument itself, the West
Kennet Avenue, the Sanctuary, West Kennet long barrow, Windmill Hill
causewayed enclosure and the enigmatic Silbury Hill are well-known. Whilst the
other Neolithic long barrows, the many Bronze Age round barrows and other
associated sites are less well-known, together they define one of the richest
and most varied areas of Neolithic and Bronze Age ceremonial monuments in the
country. Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary
monuments dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with
most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as
earthen or rubble mounds, normally ditched, which covered single or multiple
burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often
acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Often superficially similar,
although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form
and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving bowl
barrows recorded nationally and around 320 in the Avebury area. This group of
monuments will provide important information on the development of this area
during the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. All surviving examples are
considered worthy of protection.
Despite partial excavation and some damage due to cultivation, the bowl barrow
1km north-east of Avebury survives as a visible earthwork and will contain
archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the
landscape in which it was built.
Details
The monument includes a Bronze Age bowl barrow, situated on a west facing
slope overlooking the Avebury henge monument.
The barrow mound measures 26m across and survives up to 0.75m high.
Surrounding the mound is a quarry ditch from which material was obtained for
the construction of the monument. The ditch has become infilled over the
years due to cultivation but survives as a buried feature c.3m wide.
The barrow was partially excavated in 1849 by Merewether who discovered a
crouched burial, above which was a coarse pottery urn containing the burnt
bones of a child.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.
